Reunion
by Ervinai
Summary: Sirius and Remus meet after the events in the Shack. PoA, possible AU, SLASH, RemusSirius


A/N: Idea based on Run, by Snow Patrol

* * *

**Reunion**

_They say if something should  
__Fly away, And it comes back  
__to you again, Then it's yours._

_-Watch Them Fly Sundays, Stereophonics_

* * *

Remus stumbled into the cave, shivering with cold. His clothes had been shredded during the transformation and now that the moon had disappeared; he was cold and alone.

He breathed deeply. Sirius. The only thought penetrating the coldness around him. Sirius Black. Again. How long had it been since he'd fled? What had happened to Sirius during that time? Had he been caught? Remus' throat tightened and he closed his eyes tightly. He breathed deeply once more.

How was he to get back to the school? How was he to find out what had happened to Sirius? Irrational schemes flooded and stumbled through his mind and he forced them back.

A beating of wings took his attention and Lupin turned his head to get a good look at what was flying towards him. What had managed to find him here? He tensed and braced himself, fighting away the shivers that wracked his body. He waited.

The wings beats slowed but grew louder.

Hooves. Hooves on the stone outside the cave. Clopping to a halt.

A shuffle and flap of wings.

A man's voice.

"Sirius?"

"Remus!"

The dark figure of a man ran into the cave, wrapping warm but scarily thin arms around Remus, long fingers grasping his skin tightly, clothing rubbing harshly against Lupin's naked body. Long, matted hair tickled Remus' back and he closed his eyes and breathed in the scent of his lover. Even after all these years.

"What are you doing?" he whispered into the man's ear.

"Harry found a way to get me out of the castle," Sirius whispered back. His voice was hoarse. "I have to escape, go into hiding."

Remus pulled back sharply. He stared into Sirius' eyes longingly. The rest of him was painful to look at; aged, worn and skeletal as it was, but the eyes... Sirius eyes were made of steel; cold, harsh greyness. Remus had always found comfort, strength and even love in their depths.

"You can't go. Not now."

Sirius stepped back. "I have to. There's nothing more I want than to stay. Moony -" the old nickname made Remus shudder and his heart beat faster. "Moony, I want to be with you. I want to touch you, hold you...more than anything. But," he shook his head, "it's too dangerous here. The castle is surrounded by Dementors. You have to understand, I must go," he finished pleadingly. "Remus, please, I don't have a choice."

Lupin did not reply.

"Remus?" Sirius asked, as if suddenly unsure.

Remus flung himself at Sirius, lips pressed hard against the other's rough, dry ones; arms wrapped around the thin body; feeling and tasting everything he'd longed for for years. Too long.

He pulled back.

"I understand," he said.

"You do?"

Remus nodded. "I love you," he stated. "I love you more than I've loved anything in my life. Nothing has ever compared to you, nothing will ever become close. Out of everything I've done, the best thing was getting to know you." He took hold of the bony body once more. "I want you. I've wanted you all these years. Your lips, your hands, your eyes. But now you're here...and you have to go." He stepped back and nodded again. "I understand. You have to hide. Wherever you are, now that I know the truth, now that I know you're still the same Sirius I've always loved: I can love you wherever you are."

Sirius shook his head.

"What is it?" Remus asked.

"You. You're fantastic. The most wonderful person I've ever met. Thank you."

Remus smiled. "Anytime."

"I almost wish you could come with me."

Remus' eyes widened. "That's it! I'll come with you. We can start again, together, we'll never need anyone else -"

But Sirius was shaking his head again.

"It's not possible. As much as we want it... You can't just up and leave. There's the school, the job; you can't leave that. And I can't have you hunted the same as me. It isn't right."

Remus sighed. "At least let me hold you again. It's almost light; you have to leave before daybreak."

Sirius stepped forward and let Remus bury his head in the rags covering his thin body. Sirius rested his head on Remus' and held on tightly, stroking the skin above the small of Remus' back.

"You must be cold," he said softly.

"I was," came the reply.

"And now?"

"And now you're here."

Sirius lifted Remus head with his slender fingers and looked into his clear eyes. There were tears floating on the surface, threatening to swell and fall. Sirius kissed them away with gentle lips. Remus' hand grabbed hold of him tightly and he closed his eyes as Lupin kissed him deeply. When he broke away, Sirius leaned forward. He was met by Remus' fingers.

"You have to go," he whispered.

"I know."

"I love you."

"I know."

Remus smiled. Then he looked up into steel-grey eyes and the tears flooded his own. He clung to Sirius desperately, trying to memorise the exact texture of Sirius' clothes. He breathed deeply, implanting the scent of the night deep within his mind. And he stared, searching, into Sirius eyes, fighting back his tears as he etched their exact gaze into his heart.

"I don't want to go."

"You have to."

"What if -"

"Nothing. You'll be safe. Be strong. I love you. We'll see each other again, sort out this terrible mess."

"Good. I need to feel your skin again. Properly."

"But not now."

They held onto each other for what felt like an age. Once they had parted again it only felt like seconds.

"I don't want to have to say goodbye."

"I know. But I have to leave. I'll love you; wherever I am."

"Me too."

They stepped away from each other. Remus was shivering again.

"Until then."

"Until then."

Remus nodded and let Sirius leave. He did not follow for fear of clinging on. The feathers flapped, hooves beat against the ground and Remus almost heard a shaky sigh from a man broken and in tears. But he closed his eyes and tried not to listen.

The wing beats grew quieter as Sirius flew further away. Remus stood in the door of the cave and looked up at the night sky. The stars were flaming brightly and he could see the last, fading image of Sirius flickering in the distance. He tore his eyes away and looked to the horizon. Grey morning light was bleeding in, staining the night blue. He turned to the castle and began to pick his way through the grass.


End file.
